Starcraft Popup help

[Stouttrout]

I have just bought a 199?  Starcraft popup in need of a little work.  It is in great shape on the outside but a previous owner pretty much trashed the inside.  The owner directly before me would crank the top up and use a weight on the crank handle to hold the top open.  It is also very hard to crank open.  Is there a counter spring on these?  What could be causing this?  Could I fix it or should it be taken to the dealer?  All the cables look to be fine but not sure where to start looking.  

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.  I did a search on this and found alot about tops going up uneven but mine goes up perfect.  Just very hard to crank and will not stay up with out a 25lb weight hooked on the crank.

Thanks Again,
Dan

[Hunt4Fun]

On my 77 the roof is raised with a crank.  On the winch the small part that toggles the winch lock had seized up from weather and rust.

Just by taking it apart, wire brushing and a little grease, the bungee cord that was used like your 25 pound wait was no longer needed.

If the roof is difficult to raise, most likely something is in a bind.  Check the cables and pulleys and make sure that nothing is in a bind or a pulley has not collapsed.  If the cable gets off of the pulley, it can be hard to raise.

Consider removing the roof.  Mine was a simple 4 bolts to remove.  Then you can really trouble shoot the problem because you'll be able to see which of the 4 risers is binding up.

That said, I'm not sure if there have been many changes between my model and yours.

And I would highly recommend a call to Starcraft tech support.  Call their general number and dial extension 209, which is the extension for Bob Jones.  He or one of his collegues will be able to answer your questions with current information.  They are very helpful.

Hunt4Fun

[Stouttrout]

On my 77 the roof is raised with a crank.  On the winch the small part that toggles the winch lock had seized up from weather and rust.

You hit it on the nose.  It was a problem with the ratcheting part of the system.  I had dropped it twice before reading your post and could find nothing.  Once reading I went back and focused on the ratcheting area.  Wedged up under it was a very small rock that I could not event see.  I took a long thin screwdriver and moved it around and the rock fell out.  It works great now.  It is still a bit heavier than my last one but I think it is the A/C on top of this one.  Nothing seems to me binding and it looks like someone has just redone the cable system.  Looks like they did a very good job at it too.

Thanks Again,
Dan

[tlhdoc]

Welcome to PUT, both of you!  This is the great thing about this board.  When you have a question you can post it and usually someone will have an answer for you.

[Hunt4Fun]

tlhdoc,

Thanks for the welcome.  I'm refurbishing a 77 Starcraft.  It's been great therapy for me.

[brainpause]

tlhdoc,

Thanks for the welcome.  I'm refurbishing a 77 Starcraft.  It's been great therapy for me.

Welcome to PUT!

I might also invite you to my Starcraft Restoration page at http://www.larryandhollycrockett.com/restoration.html

Also, share your pictures! It will help us out!

Larry

[Stouttrout]

Thanks for the welcome.  Mine is a 92 Starlite.  It is small but it will serve my needs.  I am mounting it on another trailer sideways to serve as a toy hauler.  I have another trailer I built to put it on when we just want to take it.  All I will do it use my buds hoist and bolt it to which ever trailer I need to use.  So far i am liking the idea and getting some great info on fixing it up.

[ScouterMom]

Larry,

your Starcraft project is looking VERY interesting!

I had a tiny 1976 Starlette - much smaller than yours, but of the same 'vintage' - at the time, my son was in 3rd - 5th grade, and we had a ball fixing it up! Luckily, ours had been owned by someone who took good care of it - it's canvas was in perfect condition, the cushions, windows, screens and everything had been well kept, though it needed some other repairs after 20 yrs of use! I used it for me and my son, and had my cub scout den 'learn' on it - the boys learned how to change tires, wire lights, change signal bulbs - and all kinds of things for their 'handyman' pins!  my young son and I have many, many happy memories of that little starcraft! I  bought it in '99 and sold it in 2003 - we just weren't using it as by then, most of our camping was in tents with our boy scout troop.

One of the things you might check is the roof vent - I have seen quite a few Starcrafts of that era that had vent seals that leaked inside the roof -  it leaked down inside the sidewalls of the roof - there the wood, sealed on the outside by aluminum and on the inside by that plastic wood-look stuff,  held the water and slowly rotted.  It never leaked enough that there was an actual leak in the tailer - just enough that it stayed wet between the layers to make the wood rot after years and years. we noticed it first because the hanging part of the screen door kept coming loose - the screws had the thread rusted off!  The friend that sold us the camper knew this, and was about to replace the sidewall, and we got it really cheap, just to save him from the job.  He even gave us the plywood he'd bought to repair it. We ended up replacing two of the 4 sides of the roof, (with treated plywood like you're using) and if we had kept the trailer, would have probably replaced the other two, and maybe the roof, as well. (howqever, the roof is mostly foam, and our didn't soak up that much water, so it was OK)

after having the camper a few yrs and using it 2-3 times a month from May to Oct - we did have one corner of the lift system collapse.  I thought a cable had broken, but it was the old, plastic pulley wheel that broke.  because i had the system apart anyway, I replaced all the old pullley's with new metal ones (from Starcraft - they are GREAT about replacement parts, even for old campers!) and replace the main cable (rusty, but working) and the two front cables. They weren't expensive, either.  I also got new tires for the camper - those were really cheap, too.

Since our camper was TINY - I choose to take out the little sink and it's 10 gal water tank (under one of the dinette seats) to free up storage space.  (I'd rather use a dishpan on a picnic table, anyway - those sinks are too small for a frying pan or a dutch oven!also, too short- I'm 5'10") I found that the home improvement stores will often sell the 'cut outs' from sinks in counter tops for $1 or so - and they were the perfect size to replace the much thinner and warped tops of the built-in cooler and sink cabinets, and to make  sturdier new 'shelf' and table outside (using the old hardware) to put the 2-burner stove on. While the built-in cooler (no fridge in ours) was OK - I also took that out and made room to slide in our portable electric coleman refridgerator/cooler.  The sink and cooler spots were on either side of the door - so these could be loaded and slid in and out of the camper without having to open it up all the way.  I found a perfectly sized rubbermaid container with a lid that would slide into the 'sink' spot perfectly - which kept all my kitchen stuff handy - like in a big drawer.

We had no floor damage to ours, but like yours, ours was being 'pulled apart' at the door toward the end of the time we had it. Our double beds were actually large bi-fold hollow core doors that folded in, rather than the slides most campers have now.  Are yours that way?  the bed platforms were supported by large angled aluminum poles that hooked onto the top edge of the camper sidewall (just under the bed hinge) and the bottom of these triangular pipes hooked into the trailer frame.  It seemed to be good support, but I have not seen that arrangement in newer campers, and have noticed that most campers now have supports that simply go down to the frame - or on king/queen beds - the trailer tongue or the ground..  Since our beds opened over the wheels, and NOT over the tongue and bumper, there wasn't as much 'frame'.  but it seemed to me that the weight of people - especially large adults - over 20+ yrs, (combined with 25 yr old, dry, 1/2" plywood) was simply pulling the camper box apart at the seams.  When we sold the Starlette in 2003, the sides were 'bowed' out and the door would not stay shut without a bungee cord when the beds were in use. (Part of the reason I decided that IF we still wanted a camper, we would get a larger one for more and larger people - my 3rd grader is now a Jr in HS and over 6' tall!)

I did notice that they used alot of 1/2" ply, instead of heavier stuff.  Since I am no 'lightweight', and this stuff was 25+ yrs old, if we had kept the camper, I would have replaced more of the box  and the dinette seats - probably with 3/4 " treated plywood.  it would have made the camper heavier, but it would have probably lasted another 15- 20 yrs!

I am now in the market for another, slightly larger and probably newer, used PUP. But I'm not against some DIY work on one, either - it WAS alot of fun to work on it!  ( in fact, I've thought about building one from scratch - but some parts stump me - I can sew, but i think a decent waterproof canvas would be out of my league!)


It will be fun to watch your progress on your '79 - good luck with it!

Laura
Scoutermom